Heat recoverable insulating or corrosion resistant sleeves have found widespread application in protection and sealing of wire bundles.
Heat recoverable articles are well known. They are articles the dimensional configuration of which may be made substantially to change when subjected to heat treatment. Usually these articles recover, on heating, towards an original shape from which they have previously been deformed but the term "heat recoverable," as used herein, also includes an article, which, on heating, adopts a new configuration, even if it has not been previously deformed.
Attempts have been made to provide sleeves which may be installed at any point along a line without requiring access to its end, as is typically required by tubes. The problem most commonly encountered in constructing and installing such a wrap around or side entry article is the provision of a closure device capable of withstanding the considerable shrinkage forces exerted during recovery, and yet simple enough to be manufactured and used in a practical manner. Typical wrap around articles are also difficult to handle and install, tending to unwrap around the wire bundle while closure is effected, taking considerable time and skill. Examples of wrap around type heat recoverable articles can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,900,596; 4,735,836; 4,731,271; 4,699,821; 4,560,828; 4,518,448; 4,442,155; 4,280,258; 3,959,052 and 3,770,556; Great Britain Patent Application No. 2 043 729 A and German Patent Application 40 32 376 A1 which are hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes.
There is a need for a side entry heat recoverable article which is economical, easy to manufacture, and easy and quick to install.